Little Bean Roasters

Present-day Shanghai is at the forefront of China’s booming coffee industry, as consumers become increasingly aware of specialty coffee and gradually move beyond mainstream beverage chains. Today, the city swells with independent cafés and homegrown roasters, big and small, all vying to create a social refuge and the perfect cup for local patrons. Tucked away behind the imposing facade of Shanghai’s Science and Technology Museum, lies a string of restaurants and cafés that line the walkway along the Zhangjiabang River.

当下，走在上海街头，随处可见的专业咖啡厅让人们日益意识到，这个城市的咖啡产业已经逐步走出了连锁店的主流发展阶段，在咖啡产业蓬勃发展的中国，无疑走前列。大大小小规模不一的独立咖啡厅和烘焙店林立于上海，百花齐放，共同为当地顾客提供一方都市静谧空间，享受一杯美味咖啡。沿着张家浜河走廊，隐于恢弘的上海科技馆旁有一条布满餐馆和咖啡馆的小街，充满了生活气息。

Little Bean Roasters is an intriguing double storey structure, painted entirely in black and surrounded by minimalistic alfresco seating. The café’s interiors are composed of clean lines, featuring a clear juxtaposition between industrial charm and minimal chic. These design characteristics are synonymous with the architects who brought Little Bean to life, the Australia-based DesignOffice, who are also responsible for the design of Melbourne brunch powerhouse Higher Ground and Small Batch Roasting Co’s café, Filter. The unique adaptation of the building gave Little Bean the physical capacity to become Shanghai’s first all-inclusive café, bakery, coffee school and roastery.

Little Bean Roasters拥有黑色的色彩基调和极简风格的露天座椅，是一家颇为有趣的双层空间咖啡厅。整个店面的内部设计充满了干净利落的线条，将现代工业的魅力和简洁别致的时尚完美融合，呈现出独一无二的清新气质。这些设计特点均来自为咖啡厅带来生命力的顶尖设计团队。位于澳大利亚的设计公司DesignOffice还负责了墨尔本的早午餐店Higher Ground以及当地烘焙商Small Batch Roasting的咖啡厅Filter的设计。在建筑空间上得天独厚的优势，让Little Bean足以打造上海首家集咖啡、面包、以及咖啡与烘焙学习于一体的场所。

The ground floor comprises of the café, complete with their vintage Probat coffee roasters, which provide an authentic backsplash to the Little Bean coffee bar. The display cases are filled to the brim with fresh daily baked goods and roasted coffee beans perch on built-in displays. The dining space is open and thoughtfully comprised of intimate crevices, sunlit tables and a round standing bar table.

一楼的咖啡厅摆放着Probat复古咖啡烘豆机，为Little Bean的咖啡吧提供了原汁原味的咖啡氛围。陈列台上每日都弥漫着新鲜的烘焙香和在搅拌于烘豆机中的咖啡豆。开放式的用餐区有一个圆形的台桌，配搭上阳光透过玻璃可洒落的小桌子，并以精心设计的区域划分线营造出空间私密感。

There are two stairways that lead up to the office space and coffee school, where bright, clean natural light streams through the entire space. Of the upstairs coffee school, there are two main focal points, which are the two circular apertures that allow visitors to look directly into the café below. The two floors are subtly connected by the large mirrors that are suspended over each opening.

咖啡厅中有两架楼梯可通往二楼的办公区和咖啡教学区。楼上宽敞明亮，干净的自然光能够照亮整个空间。楼上除了开设咖啡培训，还有两个值得注意的设计细节：一是有两个打通的圆口嵌入两层之间，让二楼的顾客能够直接看到底楼的咖啡厅；另外，这里还特别安装了大型的镜子，悬挂于开口之上，形成两层奇妙连接的视觉效果。

Beyond the space itself, every little detail under the Little Bean brand has been paid considerable attention. Packaging for their retail beans are colour coded according to how they are best enjoyed; a blue label for filter coffee and a gray label for espresso. Filter coffee is expertly made and served in Tim Wendelboe cups. The shape of each cup is moulded specifically to enhance the taste of coffee it holds; the “Splitt” is wide mouthed, designed to house coffees that carry fruity, floral and acidic notes, whilst the cone-shaped “Tulipan” brings out the earthy aromas from El Salvadorian, Brazilian and Indian coffee beans.

除了空间设计，Little Bean里的每一处小细节都经过精心处理。零售咖啡豆的包装袋根据饮用的最佳方式有不同的颜色区分，蓝色标签表示适合过滤式咖啡，而灰色标签代表最好用于意大利浓缩咖啡。专业冲泡下的过滤式咖啡需要搭配Tim Wendelboe杯，每一个Tim Wendelboe杯都经过专门的铸造以提升杯中咖啡的口感。广口咖啡杯“Splitt”适用于带有水果、花卉和酸味的咖啡，让香气四溢，而收口的咖啡杯“Tulipan”则能保持来自萨尔瓦多、巴西和印度等地咖啡豆的馥郁浓香。

The white coffee at Little Bean receives equal care; they are also one of the few cafés in Shanghai that can sling an authentic flat white. The perfect flat white is a viscous carrier that champions the espresso and is characterised by a thin layer of velvety microfoam. The flat white at Little Bean pays true homage to this classic Australian coffee and is even aptly served in an Acme & Co coffee cup.

Little Bean的白咖啡也是精心制作。在上海，只有为数不多的咖啡馆中能够享受纯正flat white (奥白)。一杯完美的flat white由最好的意大利浓咖啡缀以一层轻薄细腻的奶泡。Little Bean的flat white传承了澳式咖啡的精髓，再配上最搭的Acme & Co咖啡杯，致敬经典。

It has been a year since Little Bean have opened their doors and they have been thoroughly rewarded for their wholesome approach to premium specialty coffee. Their coffee school holds regular classes that span anywhere from an afternoon to a few days, and their customer base for both dine in and online retail continue to grow by the day. With a new year fast approaching, Little Bean hope to bring their holistic approach to coffee across the river to Puxi punters in 2017.

Little Bean已经开门营业一年，以其高端专业的咖啡调配和完善的设备广受赞誉。他们的咖啡课程安排也相当灵活，从一个下午到几天，让客户有更多的选择余地。客户还能选择外卖，线上的销售也在日渐发展。随着新一年的临近，Little Bean有望在2017年将其咖啡链全方位扩散过河，为浦西顾客带来新的选择。